Eagles-Jaguars: 5 game-changing moments

A critical and character win for the Eagles, who evened their record at 4-4 with a 24-18 win over the Jaguars in London.

Here are five game-changing moments:

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1. Finally a key fourth-down stop

The Eagles had just allowed Blake Bortles to convert a fourth-and-1. On his own 35. With 4:26 left in the game.

Here we go again. Tennessee. Carolina.

A Fletcher Cox knockdown brought up fourth-and-2. Blake Bortles had a nice pocket and looked for Donte Moncrief crossing the middle, but Moncrief was blanketed by Ronald Darby, and the ball was out of Moncrief’s reach.

Ronald Darby on Donte Moncrief on fourth down. (Matt Dunham/AP)

Then it was the offense’s turn to finish the job.

On second-and-9 at the Jaguars’ 34, Wendell Smallwood bulldozed his way for 10 yards. The Jags moments earlier had just used their last timeout.

Game over.

“We finished it. At the end of the day we finished,” Carson Wentz said. “Still didn't finish the way we wanted offensively. We had the chance to kind of seal the deal. Went three-and-out, which was unfortunate. Defense stepped up. So I think at the end of the day we finished well this week.”

2. Eagles X-plays

We’ll give the struggling offense the moment instead of the D, but it wouldn’t have happened had Avonte Maddox not forced Keelan Cole to fumble. Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said last week the Eagles had to force more turnovers (they entered the game with just six), and Maddox got a big one there. Earlier the rookie D-back made a nice stop on Carlos Hyde on third-and-1.

“Great play on the ball. It's what we talk about during the week: We need defensive turnovers,” coach Doug Pederson said.

The Eagles capitalized when everyone went right except Dallas Goedert, who was open on the other side of the field, made the catch, broke a tackle and scored a 32-yard touchdown right before halftime to put the Eagles up 10-6.

“Great play-call by Coach,” Wentz said. “Time to set it up, rip — he made a great play after the catch. Got to give a lot of credit to the play-call.”

Dallas Goedert celebrates his touchdown. (Matt Dunham / AP)

Another X-play for a TD. Smallwood took a screen pass and bolted 36 yards for the score. Nice blocking inside the 5 by Shelton Gibson on Ramsey.

5. Remember Matt Bryant?

Josh Lambo, who’d already hit a 50-yarder, drilled a 57-yarder in the second quarter. A play earlier, the Eagles let T.J. Yeldon gain 15 yards on a screen on a third-and-21. It’s not unusual to play soft on third-and-long, but the Eagles get burned here.

Bottom line though — credit Lambo, whose field goal is the second-longest ever against the Eagles behind Matt Bryant’s 62-yard game-winner in 2006.

Other notable moments

• Josh Adams’ great day was almost spoiled by a fumble in the fourth. Adams, however, was down (barely) before the ball was out, and the call was overturned. The undrafted rookie out of Notre Dame had nine rushes for 61 yards.

• With the Jags’ D focused on Alshon Jeffery and Zach Ertz, Wentz’s best bud Matthews made critical catches and had a team-high 93 yards receiving on four receptions, which was tied for the team-high — and each went for a first down.

Matthews’ 13-yard catch on second-and-10 in the fourth quarter was part of the game-sealing drive.

“The thing I love about J-Matt is, you can put him at Z, X — he's going to get the job done,” Wentz said. “It was big for him to step up the way he did today. It was cool to have him be the leading receiver again. It's been a while.”

• The unnecessary roughness call on Nigel Bradham was ridiculous. Bradham touched Bortles with his hands. DJ Chark had a touchdown slide off his fingers, and Lambo kicked his fourth field goal. These calls should be eligible for review.

WR DJ Chark drops the ball in the end zone in the fourth quarter. (Matt Dunham / AP)

“I thought the defense did a nice job kind of holding them to three there late, then offense going down and being able to win the game with a couple runs,” Pederson said. “Just a great way to finish.”